I never meant to leave you
by AlwaysElisabethian
Summary: Takes place before all the Klaus and The Originals stuff! What would Elena do, if Damon decided to leave Mystic Falls behind, to let Elena be with Stefan? Delena fan fiction!
1. Saying goodbye

**Chapter 1: Saying goodbye**

-Damon's p.o.v.

I was sitting outside Elena's window, once again, balancing on the small roof. It was late – almost 2 in the morning, and she was sleeping like a baby. Her room was dark, only lit by the lamp by her bed. For a reason, she never turned it off at night. She was wearing the same pyjamas as always – shorts and a tanktop, and she was laying underneath the covers, her beautiful dark hair spread on the white pillow. She had left the window open, and it tempted me. It would be easy, climbing through the window, to see her. Feel her being close to me, once again.

I couldn't blame her for leaving the window open. We were in the middle of June, and the temperatures kept rising. Actually it surprised me that she was wearing clothes at all. I looked at her beautiful face.

And then I sighed. It had become a bad habit, to visit Elena at night time. Almost always after a drink or five. But I couldn't help it. She looked peaceful when she was sleeping. Not troubled, like she did normally. Sometimes she would even smile, or laugh in her sleep. And those smiles and laughs were the things that helped me get through the day. If I didn't get to see her smile at night time, I had no idea how I would survive.

I enjoyed watching her in her sleep. I enjoyed seeing the smile printed on her beautiful soft lips. I wondered what those lips would feel like, if they were touching mine, without her trying to fight me on it.

Ever since I had told her about my feelings for her, she had been sad around me. Sad and guilty. And even though I hate to admit it, it killed me inside, to know that I was the one making her feel sad and guilty. I hadn't seen her beautiful smile in almost a month – except for in the night. She only smiled at my brother, the witch and barbie, when she was awake. Never when she saw me. Another good reason that she could never know I was visiting her at night. She would never feel sad, knowing I could be here.

Some nights her window would be open, and some nights it would be closed. The times she closed it at night, I just stayed outside, and watched over her. I couldn't just go home. If something or someone decided to come and pay her a visit, I would be there. Nothing was going to harm her. No one.

When she left it open, I couldn't help but climb in and quietly sit on the edge of her bed, watching her sleep. Sometimes even touch her, stroke her cheek or hair. When she had nightmares, I would take off her necklace, and compel the bad dreams away. I knew it wasn't my choice to make, but I couldn't just wake her, and I wouldn't allow her to have nightmares. If I woke her up, she would know I visited her at night time. And she wasn't supposed to know that. Then she would tell Stefan, and he would kill me. No, he would _try _to kill me, and I would have to kill him, which would result in a heartbroken Elena.

After a long time of fighting my own mind, I made my decision, and climbed through the window. I wouldn't wake her up. After being a vampire for almost 200 years, I knew how to be quiet. As soon as I got inside, the scent of her hit me. Her perfume was strong, but it didn't compare to the sweet scent of _her_. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sweet scent. She was only 3 meters from me. So close, but yet so far away. If she awoke, she would scream and hit me until I left. I knew she hated me.

I sat down on the bed, careful not to wake her. She needed the sleep, and she couldn't know I was here. I wasn't supposed to be here. Stefan was supposed to be here. To sleep beside her, his arms wrapped around her beautiful, tiny body. To watch over her, to protect her from all the people that wanted to kill her. All because of her stupid doppelgänger blood.

I felt my lips tightening at the thought of Elena and Stefan together. Of course I was jealous of my brother, but there's was nothing to do about it. Elena was happy with Stefan. Sort of. And they were right for each other. They were meant to be together. As Elena had told me, it would always be Stefan.

The past month had been terrible. I had told her about my feelings for her, and then kissed her. That was a bad move. She rejected me, and I ended up killing her annoying little brother. But I had seen the ring on his finger, and knew he wasn't going to die. I knew he meant a lot to Elena, and I didn't want to cause her even more misery.

But I couldn't get my self to tell her, that I had seen the ring on his finger. It would be better anyway, if she hated me. There was never going to happen anything between us, and a clean break is better than a half. If she hated me, and believed that I didn't care for her, everything would be so much easier.

I gently stroked her white cheek. She was smiling and hugging her teddy bear. Probably dreaming about Stefan. God, she was beautiful. I sighed and put my hand back on my lap. I knew I couldn't stay for long. This would be one of the last times I saw her. No, this would be the last time I saw her. Ever. Stefan had made sure of that.

"_Damon, we need to talk," Stefan said, as he walked into the parlor of the boarding house,his hands deep in the pockets of his light jeans. He had been with Elena again. Her scent was hanging around him. I was sitting in the couch, with my usual glass of bourbon, staring into the dancing flames. I had been sitting here for almost 3 hours. Her words were still lingering in my head. _

"_It's always going to be Stefan. I'm sorry, Damon." Of course, it would always be Stefan. Just like Katherine had told me. _

_Except that Elena was nothing like Katherine. Katherine was heartless, a psychotic bitch that played me and Stefan. Elena was pure, clean and innocent. She may have Katherine's looks, but she was nothing like her. Elena would never use me, like Katherine had done. She would never play Stefan and me as Katherine had done. But Elena loved Stefan, just like Katherine. And there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. I just had to accept the fact, that I was always going to be the second choice._

"_About what?" I asked and emptied the glass. It wasn't near being empty, and at normal occasions I would take my time to drink it, but right now, I just needed the alcohol in my system. I had already figured out what he wanted to talk about. It couldn't be anything else than Elena. _

"_You can't keep hurting her like this," he said and slowly walked near me. I stood up from the couch and looked at him. "Hurting her? Last time I checked, it was her rejecting me, not the other way around. And that's not something I'm not used to, so no one is hurt! Everything's great," I said and started walking towards my room. Maybe he would leave me alone then. I really didn't want to talk to him about this. Actually, I would love to forget everything about him and Elena, and drink the alcohol I had in my room._

"_Stop it, Damon, don't try to lie to me. You love her, and you're hurting her, by telling her about it. She's completely brokenhearted, because she knows what you're feeling and she don't want to be with you. You're her friend. And you are hurting your friend, by being here. She hates that she's hurting you so much, just by being near you. Haven't you noticed that she never smiles when you're around, and her heartbeat going up? She's feeling guilty as hell. And that's because of you," he said. I stopped and looked at him again._

"_What are you suggesting?" I asked and frowned. Was he really telling the truth? And why would he be telling me all of this? It really didn't sound like my little brother. _

"_I'm suggesting that you go somewhere else, for a time. Leave town, give her a little space. Maybe you can come back in a couple of years," he said and shrugged, still with his hands buried in his pockets. Somehow, I knew that was what he was going to suggest. And maybe he was right. _

"_That's not going to happen, Stefan," I said and started walking up the stairs to my room, "I'm not going to come back." _

I looked at the note in my hand. The note I was going to leave behind, telling Elena why I had to leave, and that she shouldn't be looking for me. I couldn't bare telling her face to face. I didn't want to see her smile, when I told her I wasn't ever going to come back. I didn't want her to tell me that it was fine and it was the right decision. No, leaving a note would be better. A note actually telling the truth.

I had spent hours trying to write the right thing, on the damned paper. How do you tell the girl of your dreams, that you're going to leave her forever? And without reminding her of your feelings for her? It's almost impossible. But I had finished the note, and now all I had to do, was to leave it here for her to find. Then everything was going to be okay. She was going to be happy with my baby brother, and live her life to the fullest with him. And I was going to go to some city, and find a girl to be with. I had no problems finding new girls, even though no one would be able to reach my heart as she had. Why had I ever allowed her to get this close to me?

I sighed and gently touched her beautiful hair. This would be the last time I ever got to touch her. I bit my underlip, as I felt the tears in my eyes. I wasn't going to cry. As soon as I had gotten far away, I was going to turn my emotions off. Then I could forget about Elena, and live my sad, undead life.

I stood up from the bed and walked to her desk. I smiled as I looked at all the pictures on her mirror. Pictures of her and her friends. Everyone, except for me. Of course she didn't have a picture of me. She hated me. I sighed and looked at the frames on the desk. More pictures. And one of them was of me and her! I picked it up, and looked at it. I smiled as I remembered the day.

"_Damon! You can't just keep appearing in my room, whenever you like!" Elena said, walking out her bathroom door, only wearing her pyjamas. I smiled at her and stood up from her bed. I couldn't wait for her to see the surprise I had brought for her. _

"_Well, you seem to be liking my presence, princess, so I don't want to stop doing it," I said with a smirk and stood up from the bed. It had become a habit to call her princess. And it fit her perfectly. She was a princess. And she was going to be my princess one day. I had promised my self, and that was going to happen._

_She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. _

"_What do you want, Damon?" she asked and put down her clothes from the day, on a chair. I smiled as I walked to her, trying not to look at her pyjamas. She looked way too cute in it, and she couldn't know how it affected me. Not yet, at least._

"_I brought you something. A surprise," I said, with both my arms behind my back, holding on to the camera I was going to give her. A Canon, of course. It had been on her wish list this Christmas, but she hadn't got it from any one. Now I was going to give it to her. _

"_What? Why? It's February, my birthday isn't for months!" she said and frowned. I smiled and handed her the wrapped gift. _

"_Well, I didn't get to give you a Christmas present. Now you can have one," I said and shrugged. She looked at the gift and then looked at me. _

"_Damon, I can't accept this! You shouldn't be spending your money on me," she said and tried pushing the gift back to me. I sighed._

"_Take the gift, princess, I can't use it for anything. I bought this for you. Please accept it," I said, doing my puppy eyes. I knew she couldn't resist those. She sighed and took the gift. I smiled. "Yes!" I said, as she sat down on the bed and started unwrapping it. I felt nervous. The faint beat of my heart sped up, as she bit her lip, while unwrapping. _

_I sat down next to her, and looked at her face, when the gift wrapping was off, and she could see what I had got her. Her mouth went open, and she looked at me, being completely speechless. Just the reaction I had hoped for._

"_Oh my God, Damon. You can't just give me this," she said, and looked at the Canon camera she was holding in her hand. I smiled at the look of her surprised face._

"_Yes, I can. In fact, I want you to use it, right now," I said and nodded towards the package. She frowned and started opening the package. I had made sure everything was ready, so that we could use the camera right away._

"_I have noticed that you have no cute pictures of us, here in your room. But you have lots of pictures of everyone else. Well, now you can put up some of us as well," I said, as she turned it on, and quickly snapped a picture of me. I smiled, knowing that she would never know, that she had been my valentine. _

I smiled at our faces. Both of us were smiling, her head resting on my shoulder. She looked happy. I had given her one night of fun. And she had never figured out, that I had been there, just after midnight, on February the 14th.

Knowing that I didn't have much time left, I removed the photo from the frame, and put it in my pocket. I wanted a picture of us together. I left the note in the frame instead, and then sat down on the bed again. I wanted to take my time to say goodbye. I was never going to see her again.

I carefully got near, and left a small kiss on her forehead. She wrapped her arms around my waist, and placed her head on my lap. I frowned and looked down at her, gently stroking her hair.

"Damon..." she said, without opening her eyes. I blinked, being totally surprised by her saying my name. Was she still sleeping? And was she dreaming about me?

"Just sleep, princess. Everything's fine," I said and carefully removed her arms. She smiled and hugged her teddy bear again. Her heartbeat was slow, telling me that she was asleep. Taking my decision, I stood up and got out of the window again, making my way to my car. Without looking back, I turned on the car and left Mystic Falls behind, with everything in it. That including Elena.

**Please, review! **


	2. One month

**I want to warn everyone about this chapter. It contains a lot of very depressive and bad stuff. Just to be clear, I am NOT encouraging cutting or anorexia. It is not well for your body, and a very dangerous thing. **

**After all the warnings, I want to thank the three people that has been kind enough to review! I am absolutely thrilled! I will try to update this as much as possible, but I do have a life (that meaning school and my music of course), and I also have a lot of other fan fictions going. I hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 2: One month**

-Elena's p.o.v.

I sat on my bed, tears streaming down my face, while I read Damon's note for God knows how many times. I nearly had it memorized.

It had been almost a month since I woke up with the note in a frame on my desk. My favorite photo was gone, replaced by a small note. A note I hadn't let anyone else read, and a note I always kept close to me. It was the only thing I had left from my best friend.

The letter really didn't tell me why he left. It did come with a reason, but I knew that wasn't the real reason. Damon hadn't left me, just because he was bored and needed to see new things. That couldn't be true. It hadn't taken me a long time to figure out why he had left. He had told me about his feelings for me. And of course I got scared, denied every feeling I could possibly feel towards him, and put as much distance between as possible. Bad move.

Damon was gone, and he wasn't coming back. He had made that very clear in his note. The first few days, I had been just as sad, just like when I lost my parents. I hadn't left my bed, only eating small bits of the food Jenna had brought me. I had been crying all the time, and didn't want to see anyone. When Stefan came, I ignored him, not wanting to talk to anyone. But he kept visiting anyway, of course without Jenna knowing.

After almost two weeks, I got out of bed, started going to school again, but I still didn't eat, and the thought of harming my self started to sound really nice. I know, that's not something pretty girl's do, and that's not something a girl with a vampire boyfriend do. But I did it. Started self harming. It's a miracle Stefan didn't notice, but I never let him see my arms or thighs.

He never knew about the nights I spend, sliding the small blade across my arms, my thighs, sometimes even my stomach. I made sure the blade was cleaned up afterward, and always kept my wounds away from him.

And then it had started making sense. Everything had started making sense. Damon wasn't just my best friend. I loved him. I had cried even more than I normally did, when I found out my feelings for Stefan was gone, and that I had fallen in love with his brother.

"Elena, there's someone here to see you!" Jenna called from the door, making me snap out of my thoughts. I quickly removed the tears from my cheeks and put the letter in my purse, as I walked down the stairs to the door. Stefan stood there, waiting for me, looking really good in his suit. I managed to smile vaguely as he stepped inside, gently grabbed my hand and kissed it.

"Are you ready to go, Miss Gilbert?" he asked, being the gentleman he is. I kept the weak smile printed on my lips and nodded. This was my senior prom. I couldn't miss it, Caroline had made that perfectly clear to me. So I had bought a dress, a cardigan and had made sure I looked somewhere near okay. And now I was going with Stefan.

I still hadn't told him about my feelings for Damon. I couldn't let my self break his heart, by telling him about it. And Damon had written that I shouldn't go looking for him. Maybe I would never see him again, and then why dump Stefan?

As we walked to Stefan's car, I couldn't think of anything else, than how much I wanted it to be Damon next to me, not Stefan. How could I not have noticed my feelings for Damon, when he was still around? I was sure they had been there for quiet a long time.

"You look beautiful, Elena," Stefan said, as he opened the car door. I smiled and got in his car. "Thank you. You doesn't look too bad yourself," I said and looked at my hands. I had gotten used to my body getting smaller, my bones getting more visible. That had to be what happened, when you don't eat.

The drive to the school was long. Much longer than normally. We didn't talk, while he was driving. He knew I wasn't in the mood for talking. I never was. When we reached our destination, I hurried out of the car and started walking towards the school, without waiting for him.

Stefan didn't take long to catch up and gently grabbed my arm. I flinched, as he touched my scars. He frowned and let go of my arm, only to put his around my back. I let him take me towards the school, smiled when people took pictures, but the only thing on my mind was Damon. How it should be Damon next to me, not Stefan.

Damon, Damon, _Damon_. I felt guilty. The only thing on my mind, was him. I shouldn't be thinking about Damon, when I was with Stefan. I should be thinking about Stefan. My boyfriend. My so called epic love.

But no. All I could think about, was his brother. The man that everyone saw as evil, sadistic and mean. A monster without emotions, as Caroline used to tell me. Both of them had been relived and happy, when I told them that Damon was gone. Of course I never mentioned my feelings towards him. They would hate me, and tell me how wrong I was.

I hated that everyone saw Damon as evil. He wasn't. I was sure of that. But only because Damon let me see the good things in him. His emotions, his true self. He always seemed to shut that part down, when others were around. I wished he hadn't.

I was grateful when we met Bonnie and Caroline. Okay, they hated Damon, which didn't really make me like them, but they were my friends. My only friends. At least they could take my mind off things. Caroline started talking to Stefan, while Bonnie got me away from the crowd of people, standing outside the school.

"Elena, I found Damon," she said, going right to the point, as we stepped inside. The gym looked nothing like it self. The walls were full of balloons and other kinds of decorations, all in the colors red and white. In the back were a big stage, with a band, already playing soft music. But I couldn't afford to focus on the decorations. Not after what Bonnie had told me.

"Where is he?" I asked and looked at Stefan. Caroline had gotten him to go somewhere with her, probably to the hallway. Thank God for her. Bonnie grabbed the upper part of my arm and dragged me with her, inside the gym.

"He's in Georgia. Go now, take my car, then we'll distract Stefan," she said and handed me her car keys. I frowned. Georgia? What the hell was he doing in Georgia? I had expected him to go somewhere very far away, like Italy or something like that. Not Georgia.

"Go find him, Elena. You two deserve each other," she said with a vague smile. Did she know about my feelings? But I hadn't told her?

"You know?" I asked and frowned. She smiled and nodded. "Of course I do. Now, go get your man," she said. I thanked her and started walking towards the hallway, hoping I would be able to find them quickly. I didn't want to waste any more time. I should have been looking for Damon for a month.

As I stepped into the hallway, I saw them, and felt the relief fill my body.

"Stefan?" I said, trying to get his attention. He turned around and looked at me, a smile printed on his lips. That smile disappeared when he saw my serious face expression and Bonnie's car keys in my hand.

Caroline quickly disappeared. Probably going to enjoy her senior dance. I wouldn't take part in that. Not without Damon.

"You're going after him, aren't you?" Stefan asked, speaking very quietly. I nodded. He sighed and started walking towards me. "Come on, I'll drive you home. Then you can go in your own car," he said and gently put his hand on my back. I gave him a grateful look, as we walked in the gym again, to give Bonnie her keys back.

"I'm in love with him, Stefan," I said, as we were driving home. I had no intentions to tell him. It just kind of burst out of me. A flash of pain went across his face, as I said the words he had dreaded, but it disappeared just as fast.

"I know..." he said, and pushed the car's speed limits. I felt my heartbeat sped up, as he went faster and faster, but I didn't say a thing. I was the one that had just admitted to be in love with my now ex-boyfriend's brother.

"I'm sorry," I said, as he pulled up in front of my house. He got out of the car and pointed towards my backyard. I frowned, and looked at him.

"I'll help you get through your window to pack a bag. I don't think your aunt would be happy to see you come home so early, and leave with a bag," Stefan said, and started walking to the backyard. He had a very good point. I put my arms around his neck, and closed my eyes as he used his vampire speed to get us into my room.

"Thanks," I said and quickly started packing a bag. It only contained the most necessary things. Clothes, money, toothbrush, hairbrush and a small bag of make-up. I had no idea for how long I would be gone. Georgia was far away. At least I knew where he was.

"You ready?" he said. I had changed clothes, now wearing a pair of jeans and a tanktop, with my leather jacket on. I nodded, grabbed my bag and car keys and hugged him once again. As we landed on the soft grass in my backyard again, he left a small kiss on my forehead.

"Be safe, Elena," he said and then disappeared. I heard his car starting, and knew he had left. Maybe this would be the last time I saw him. I quickly got to my car, turned the engine on, and started my trip towards Georgia. I knew exactly where Damon was to be found.

As I got out of Mystic Falls, I noticed the weather started to change. It started raining, and the clouds were dark. It was going to thunder. I nervously bit my underlip, but kept on driving. Damon wasn't going to stick around, I knew that. I had already wasted a full month. I had to get to him, fast. No stopping.

I ignored the skies, and kept my eyes on the road, focusing on getting to Damon. I would be safe when I found him. Or rather, I hoped that I'd be safe, when I found him. He had told me not to go looking for him, but I really didn't care. I had found out what I felt. I wanted to tell him, and I wanted to know what he was feeling.

The road keep getting darker and darker, and as the rain got thicker, I couldn't see a thing. I heard the first thunder and flinched a bit. This wasn't going to be a nice trip at all. I pulled myself together and kept on driving. I couldn't just stop.

-Damon's p.o.v.

I pulled in the parking lot in front of Bree's bar. This would be one of my last stop's, before I was going to Europe. For a month I'd been driving around in the states surrounding Mystic Falls, always wanting to turn around and go back. But I couldn't go back, not ever. I had made sure of that, when I wrote the note for Elena. She wasn't going to want to see me again. Not ever. And I couldn't go see her again.

I looked at the picture I had taken from her house. I always carried it with me. It was always either in my pocket or in my hand. I smiled a bit at her happy face, carefully put it back in my pocket and used my vampire speed to get into Bree's bar, without getting wet from the rain. A big lightning lit up the sky and a loud thunder followed. Terrible weather.

"Well, look who decided to pay me a visit!" Bree said, as I walked into the bar. I smiled, raised my arms a bit and kept walking towards the bar. She laughed as I got near and sat down on a chair. "Now, what brings your sexy ass to Georgia? And where's that girl you brought with you the last time? Elena?" she asked. I felt the dark veins under my eyes coming forth, at the sound of her name, and felt a small pain in my chest.

"Gone," I said shortly and asked for a scotch. If she was going to talk about Elena, I would need alcohol, and a lot of it. Bree frowned and handed me my scotch.

"You killed her?" she asked, as I emptied the glass. I shook my head and put down the glass on the table. Did she honestly think I would kill someone as amazing as Elena?

"Of course I didn't kill her. I left her," I said as she filled up again. She raised one eyebrow as I let the warming liquid slide down my throat. "You left her? What happened? You seemed like you were madly in love with her, when you brought her here?" she said and exchanged my glass with the whole bottle.

I grabbed the bottle, gave her a small nod and started drinking. She was about to say more, when a couple of very loud guys entered the bar, with a small girl in between them.

I couldn't care less about the people that entered, but I happened to be quiet hungry. The small group seemed to be teenagers. They didn't even look old enough to be at bars. But, hell, Elena wasn't old enough either when I brought her. They seemed to be at her age, and the girl actually looked like her. Thin, and the same color hair. But as she looked at me, I saw that her eyes were green, not chocolate brown like Elena's.

They sat down at one of the booths and talked to each other, while they figured out what they were going to buy. As the girl went to the bar, I sat down next to her.

"May I buy you a drink?" I asked, with my charming smile. No girl could possibly resist that smile. And this girl were no exception. "You may," she said and smiled at me.

"Bree, a drink for..." I looked at the girl. She blushed slightly and muttered her name. "Candice! A drink for Candice!" I said, with my usual charming smirk.

One or two drinks later, she was almost sitting at my lap, her lips close to mine. I wasn't going to kiss her. But I would feed from her.

"Why don't you and I go out side and... Get some fresh air?" I asked and tangled my fingers into her hair. It wasn't near as soft and shiny as Elena's. I had to stop thinking about Elena! I had said my goodbyes, and I was never going to see her again.

The girl nodded and went with me. As soon as we got outside, still under cover from the roof of course, I compelled her not to scream, and pressed her against the wall of the bar. Then I quickly bit into her throat and enjoyed the feeling of her warm blood in my mouth. Not my favorite type of blood, she was O positive.

She was slightly moaning in my ear, and begged me not to stop. I rolled my eyes, and felt her heartbeat going down. I had to stop now.

"Why didn't you keep on going?" she asked, with a seductive voice. I sighed. "You don't remember anything about me. You started feeling bad, and went home. Your friend became a little too eager and bit you," I said as I saw her eyes going blank. What would I do without compulsion?

I quickly removed the blood stains from my mouth and smiled as I walked into the bar again. I was going to drink a lot of alcohol tonight. But something removed my smile, as soon as I stepped into the bar again. I knew that scent.

**Please be kind enough to leave a review! That would make my day/night! **

**I am working hard on a new fan fiction called 'Playing for change', that features Elena as a poor violinist in 1864! I am almost done with the first chapter! Have a nice day, people!**


	3. Kidnapped

**Chapter 3: kidnapped**

-Elena's p.o.v (from where Damon went outside with Candice)

When I pulled up in front of the bar, I was terrified. My heart was beating a thousand km per second, and I felt as if I was going to faint at any moment. But I couldn't give up now. I had finally reached my destination. I knew Damon was going to be just inside the bar, and when I got in, I would tell him about my feelings for him, and everything was going to be great.

I breathed in deep, and ran to the bar. I didn't want to get too wet. But the rain was strong, and I was dripping when I stepped into the bar. A lot of people were inside, and they all seemed like they were at my age. But there was no sign of Damon. None at all. I had been sure this was the place I would find him.

I frowned and went to the bar. "Something to drink, sweetheart?" Bree asked and placed a beer in front of me. I nodded and took a drink. "Have you seen Damon?" I asked, still looking around the room. She nodded slightly. "He's outside with a girl..." she said, uncertain whatever she should say something. I frowned. My heart was racing. I had found him. But as he had said, he didn't wanted to be found. Maybe because he'd found a new girl.

"A girl?" I asked, and sat down, slowly feeling my heart breaking. She nodded. "Don't you worry, honey. That's just what Damon is like," she said and handed me a glass of brandy. I frowned, but let the alcohol warm my body. Maybe this was just what I needed.

"Well, if that's what he's like.." I said, and asked for a couple of shots. I would show him. Bree did as I asked, without questioning me. As soon as I felt the alcohol in my system, I went to the dance floor, that was already filled with young people, just like my self. I was going to enjoy my self. I had come all the way to Georgia to tell him about my feelings, but that sure as hell didn't matter to him.

It didn't take long for a boy to join me in my dancing. I smiled at him, putting my arms around his neck. If Damon could have his fun with a girl, I could do exactly the same with a boy.

The boy was actually kind of cute. Tall, at least 1.85, blonde hair, styled with wax and other fancy hair products, and he looked pretty muscular. He was nothing like Damon, and didn't even come close to his good looks, but that really didn't matter. I had come here for Damon, but plans had changed. I was going home with this guy, not Damon.

"I'm Marcus," the guy said in my ear, as we got closer. "Elena!" I answered and smiled at him. The music mixed with the alcohol made me feel happy for the first time in a very long time. There was no Stefan to worry about, no Caroline or Bonnie. Even no Damon. There was only Marcus and I, and I liked that feeling. Right now Marcus seemed like a pretty good choice. He didn't knew about all the fucked up things. Didn't knew about my dead parents, didn't knew about the whole vampires, werewolves and other mystical creatures stuff. Just an ordinary guy, that seemed like he was pretty into me.

And he was. When the next song began, he somehow got me up against a wall, as our lips met. He wasn't exactly a bad kisser, but there was absolutely no feelings, other than lust, in that kiss. But did that really matter? It wasn't like he was going to be a boyfriend. We were just making out, maybe sleeping together later. No strings attached. As the kiss got more intimate, I let my arms slip around his neck, pulling him closer. I clearly felt just what he wanted to do.

It wasn't until we broke apart to breathe, that I felt the tension of the room had changed. But why should I care? I was probably going home with Marcus. The other people in the bar didn't mean anything to me. Well, except for the person stepping into the bar. He was the one guy that actually meant something to me.

I felt my heart rate go up, as he caught my eyes. He looked absolutely broken. At first I wanted to push Marcus away, and go to Damon, and hold him. But then I remembered what he had been doing just 2 minutes ago. I looked at Marcus again, and put my one hand on his cheek.

"Wanna get out of here?" he asked, only looking at my lips. I smiled at him and placed a kiss on his lips. "I thought you'd never ask," I said as we grabbed his things and started walking out. On the way, Damon grabbed my arm. I flinched at the touch. My scars hurt.

"What are you doing here, Elena? I said I didn't want to be found," he said, almost growling. He was angry. No doubt about that. "And I should have believed you. Have fun with your girls, Damon. Bye," I said and followed Marcus. Damon didn't seem to follow, which made it easier to hide the small tears starting to form in my eyes.

But when I walked into the parking lot, there was no sign of Marcus anywhere. I frowned and looked around.

"Marcus? Where did you go?" I asked, and stepped outside. The rain had finally stopped. Just as I stepped down from the porch, something landed right in front of me, splashing water on me from the small pool of water on the ground. As I looked, I saw it was Marcus. Only he wasn't alive any more. No human would be able to survive what had happened to him.

The next thing I knew, someone put a large hand in front of my mouth, and lifted me, running away with vampire speed. I tried to scream, but couldn't. Hell, I couldn't even breathe. What the hell was going on? After a minute, I felt myself getting dizzy, and then I fainted.

-Damon's p.o.v

Every emotion that I had tried to suppress the last month, came to the surface when I saw Elena completely entangled with a boy I had never seen before. What the hell was she doing in Georgia? She wasn't supposed to be here. She was supposed to be home, sleeping next to Stefan, happy that I finally left her. When she spoke to me, her voice was colder than ice. It broke my heart. It had been impossible to turn off my feelings. I loved her too much, and I hated every second of it.

It wasn't until she was gone, that I thought about her parting words. 'Have fun with your girls'. What girls? I hadn't been with a girl since... Well, since a long time ago. I frowned and walked up to the bar. Maybe Bree knew something. Elena had been drunk. That would mean she had been talking to Bree.

"Do you know anything about Elena's little comment about girls?" I asked, as I sat down on a bar stool. She turned her back to me, and walked to the back of the bar, without answering me. I got up and walked around the bar. Then I grabbed her arm, and held her.

"You're going to tell me exactly what Elena said to you, and what you told her," I growled and felt my eyes changing a bit, due to my anger. If she had been the reason Elena had just walked out of the bar with a complete stranger... I enjoyed seeing the fright in her eyes. I liked the way she was afraid of me. If she was afraid, she was going to tell me what had happened.

"She came in and asked for you. I told her you were outside with a girl, and then she started drinking..." she said, and shut her eyes tightly, waiting for my next move. I smiled my usual predator smile. "Well, you'll have to excuse me, I'm going to find my girl," I said and let her go. Then I disappeared out the door, but there was no sign of Elena. Her scent was still lingering in the air, but I couldn't see or sense her anywhere around. The only sign of her was her car. And a body laying on the ground. The boy she had been kissing was clearly dead. I frowned and looked at the body. He had been torn apart and sucked dry. Only one person I knew could be responsible for that act. But he wasn't supposed to be here either. What was going on?

-Elena's p.o.v

My whole body was aching, when I started to regain consciousness. Every limp felt frozen and like it had been broken at least three places. I was laying on the ground, somewhere cold and wet. I tried to sit up, but it hurt way too much. What the hell had happened to me? I tried remembering, but nothing was new. I remembered Marcus being dead, me being kidnapped. Was this Damon's way of getting back at me, for leaving with Marcus? To kill him and kidnap me? And what did he have in mind for me? Now that he had found another girl, I might not be that important to him anymore. It had been a whole month since he'd seen me.

"Damon?" I asked, but my voice was hoarse and quiet. He would hear me, I was sure of that. His vampire hearing had never failed before. But there was no answer. I frowned and started looking around.

The place was big, and seemed abandoned. It looked much like an old storage house. It wasn't empty though. Big shelveswere everywhere, and it seemed that they still held a lot of different items. But what on earth was I doing here? This didn't exactly seem like a nice place. The floor was wet from rain and a red liquid. I looked at my hands, and recognised the red liquid. It was blood. Was I bleeding? Would Damon ever hurt me? He had always been the one to protect me. Ever since we met, he had been there to protect me, to comfort me.

I was still fully clothed, and when I looked at my self, I wasn't able to see any kind of wounds. Then I slowly touched my head, and let out a sigh of relief, when I couldn't feel any wounds. The blood wasn't mine. But who did it belong to? Was anyone else here, besides me?

This time I forced my self to sit up. I felt bruised, aching. I let out a small wimp as I sat up. It hurt a lot. Had Damon really been hurting me? Was it even Damon that brought me here? No. He would never hurt me. I was sure of that. I knew about his feelings, and those feelings would never allow him to hurt me.

But if it wasn't Damon, then who could have kidnapped me? We had taken care of the tomb vampires, and Katherine didn't even knew about me. Surely she couldn't have done this? Why would she return?

I slowly got up from my spot on the wet ground and started walking carefully around. And then the smell hit me. The smell of death. Someone had surely died in here. And whoever had died, had been in here for some time. And as I made my way through the isles, I found the dead person. Actually, I found the dead _persons. _A big pile of bodies were laying on the ground, carelessly thrown in a pile. I had never seen so many dead people in my life, and the sight made me sick to my stomach. Who was responsible for all of this?

I held my breath, as I got near the victims. All of them had been torn apart, every limp from the torso. What the hell was going on? And what was going to happen to me?

"Anyone here?" I asked, now with a very shaky voice. I had no idea who had brought me here, but that person had to be dangerous. Very dangerous. I quietly walked away from the bodies and started breathing again. I still needed air. And then I heard something, or someone move. I felt my heartbeat go up to at least 300 km/h. And then the realisation hit me. I was going to die in this place. I felt my knees give up, and fell to the ground, fat tears rolling down my cheeks. I wasn't ready to die. I had so much left to do. I was only seventeen years old for God's sake!

I found my self whispering Damon's name over and over again, and closed my eyes shut, only thinking about his amazing blue eyes. If I was going to die, he was going to be the last thing on my mind. Why hadn't I just told him what he meant to me? Why did I have to get together with another guy instead? I just couldn't do anything right.

As I sat there, crying and waiting for my death to come, I forced my self to think back at all the good times I had had with Damon. When he gave me the camera, when he had danced with me to the founder's day. The look in his eyes, as he told me that he loved me, and the vulnerability showing as he took a chance and kissed me. I pulled my legs up underneath my body and hugged my knees tightly.

I wished I hadn't rejected him. I would never know what it would be like to kiss him, when both of us wanted it. And if I hadn't rejected him, he would never have killed Jeremy. Then I wouldn't have been as mad as I had been, the month before he left. And then he might never have left. But if he hadn't left, I might never have been aware of my feelings for him. I loved him. It was clear as the sun. It had been for a while now. And I had stayed with Stefan. How could I be so stupid?

"Why are you saying his name? It isn't his name you're supposed to be saying, when you're afraid!" I heard a voice growl. And I recognised the voice. But, it couldn't be him, could it? He would never do anything like this? Not wanting to see him, I buried my head in my knees, and squeezed tight around them. My sobs were getting louder, as I kept Damon in my mind. I didn't want to think about _him_. He was going to kill me. He had turned it off.

"Stop saying his Goddamn name! It's not him you ought to be thinking about! You're afraid of me. I know you are. You've seen what I'm able to do. Didn't think I had it in me, did you?" His voice was mocking. He was playing with me, before he would kill me. I started shaking, and forced my self to only think about Damon, to think about what I wanted to tell him. The words exactly I had been meaning to say to him.

"I love you, Damon, I love you..." I kept repeating as a small whisper, still with my eyes shut tightly. I didn't want to see _him_ in front of me. I didn't want to see this side of him. He had fought the urge for so long, and now he had given in, and ruined everything he had fought for. He had given up.

"No, you don't! Because you can't love a monster like him! If you can't love me, you can't love someone like him! He's not good enough for you. He never will be. Stop saying his name! STOP IT!" He was furious, and I was scared, but I couldn't stop saying Damon's name. It calmed me down. I felt him grab my hair and pull me up. The pain shut through my head, like a thousand bullets. I had never felt a pain like that before. It was worse than when I broke my arm in third grade. I kept my eyes shut, as I screamed, and let go of my knees. The pain was unbearable.

"LOOK AT ME!" He let go of my hair, and I fell to the floor, feeling my head banging against the floor, as I lost consciousness.

**So chapter 3! Please leave a review! :)**


	4. Saved

**Oh my God, I'm so sorry.. I haven't updated in forever, I know, I know! But here's a new update, and I have to say that this probably will be coming to an end. Maybe one or two chapters more, before it's finished. Enjoy chapter 4, and I'll see you at the bottom!**

**Chapter 4: **

-Elena's p.o.v

I slowly opened my eyes, and carefully lifted my hands to touch my head. I could feel a big bump, probably a result after colliding with the floor, but I wasn't bleeding anywhere. A very fortunate thing, considering who had trapped me here. I had forgotten everything about him. He was sitting on the wet and cold floor, about 10 meters away from me. His green eyes never left me and he looked miserable in his bloodstained white tanktop and jeans. What on earth was he doing? It was clear that he was on a killing spree once again. He was drinking human blood again, and he had become the ripper.

"Stefan..." I said, with a very small and fragile voice. Something in his eyes changed. The sweet, calm Stefan was gone. He had turned it all off. I realised that he had to be the one behind all the dead bodies on the ground. He had drained them, killed them... Oh my God. I was going to look exactly like the other bodies within long. I had never been that afraid in all of my life. What had made him do this? What had made him turn it all off, made him go crazy again? No one forced the blood down his throat.

"I... I didn't mean to kill them... See, they're all good again..." he said, and pointed towards the wall behind me. Slowly, I turned my head around, and the sight that met me, made me sick to my stomach. All the bodies were sitting with their backs against the wall. He had put them back together. Damon had told me about Stefan the Ripper, but I had never in my life thought that I was going to see that side of him. He had left that behind. Or so I thought.

The man I had once loved of all my heart, was sitting not far from me, having killed all of those people. He was the ripper, and he was going to rip me, if I wasn't careful.

When I looked back at him, he wasn't sitting in the same spot. He was right in front of me, his black veins clearly standing out. His fangs were completely out, and he couldn't tear his look from my neck. I held my breath, knowing that he was going to kill me. My first real love, was going to be the death of me. Love does kill, I guess. Why did I have to get involved with vampires in the first place? If I hadn't gone after him, if I hadn't kissed him... If I hadn't met him, I would never have been in this situation. I would've gotten to live a full human life...

But then I wouldn't have met Damon... That quickly made me realise that I didn't regret one small bit. Because everything that had happened, had led me to Damon. And I loved him.

"You smell so good," Stefan said and put two fingers on my neck, right on my pulse point. I gulped and remembered to breathe again. I wasn't just giving up, but I had to be very careful. He wasn't anywhere near stable. Maybe I could talk him out of it. Make him realise that he really didn't want to do this. I had to be strong.

"One bite, right here. I know how to stop. I could only drink a little bit from you, and you would be okay. I will feed you my blood, and you will become mine forever. My vampire girlfriend." His shaking hand gently touched my cheek. He looked insane. He looked more than insane. He was completely out of his mind, and I was scared as hell. I didn't want to become a vampire. I wasn't finished being a human. I couldn't be. The only reason I wanted to turn, was to be with Damon forever. And it should be Damon that turned me. Not Stefan. Not with the risk of him draining me dry.

I closed my eyes, and returned to my happy thoughts of Damon. His beautiful blue eyes. Those eyes I loved so much. The man I loved so much. Why wasn't he here? Why hadn't I told him about my feelings back at the bar? If I had sucked it up, and told him exactly what I felt for him, I would be with him right now, not fighting for my life, in some abandoned warehouse.

I felt Stefan's cool breath at my neck, and opened my eyes. Was he really going to do this? I feared for the worst, as I put my hands on his shoulders and carefully pushed him a bit back. He obliged, and I refrained from letting out a relieved sigh. The small balance between his sanity and insanity could easily be broken.

"Stefan... Do you want to hurt me?" I asked, trying to look as hurt and fragile, as I actually was. I needed to make him see that he was scaring me. Maybe I could talk some sense to his head. There was no chance anyone would come and rescue me. Damon was probably already on the other side of the earth with another girl, and I was in Georgia – none of my friends were here. This was really the end. I was going to die.

"I want to hurt you... You broke my heart. You chose my brother over me. Damon. How could you choose someone like him?!" He was slowly getting him self worked up, growling at me. And I was slowly getting more and more scared. How could this be the same man that I had dated? He was furious, he was a predator, and he was scary as hell. How could a little human blood change this man so much?

And how on earth was I supposed to explain to him, just why I chose his brother over him? And I had to do it, without him getting too mad. He could kill me easily. My neck would snap like a match under his hands.

"Listen, Stefan... I still love you. I'm just not in love with you anymore. I love Damon. I'm sorry, Stefan. I really am," I said, speaking the truth. Even though I wished I could have just kept my feelings towards Stefan, that wasn't what had happened, and I couldn't change that. I had to fall in love with his brother. And even though I really wanted to slap my self, to tell my self to gather up and get over it, I knew it was right. It was right to be in love with Damon. Because Damon was the right one for me, and I had known it for too long. If I hadn't denied it that night, this would have never happened.

"No, you're still in love with me! You will always be in love with me! I know it," I saw tears starting to form in his eyes, as he flashed his fangs. He grabbed me by my throat and pinned me to the wall behind me. I let out a small scream, as my back hit the wall. His fangs gently touched the thin skin on my neck. I closed my eyes, and kept thinking of Damon, preparing to feel the pain. I wasn't ready to die at all.

"Stefan... You will always be something special... You're my first love, and you know that. But it's time to let go," I said, trying to keep my breathing and heartbeat down. My blood wouldn't be pumping through my veins as fast, if I were calm and collected. And if I didn't seem scared, maybe he would be reasonable. Maybe I would get out of this alive. Just maybe. And then I'd might be able to find Damon again.

"But I don't want to let go. I could compel you. I'm drinking human blood, it would be powerful enough. You could love me, to the end of the world," he said, carefully caressing my cheek, while his other hand held me pinned to the cold wall.

"Just like what Katherine did to you?" I whispered, looking at him, as he pulled away from my neck. His fangs suddenly disappeared, as he looked at me. He was miserable, and something in me wanted to hug him and tell him everything was going to be okay. But he was dangerous, and I needed to be careful, if I was going to make it out alive.

"But Katherine loved me... And I loved her... And you love me... You just need to see that," he said, still looking tormented. God, what had he been smoking? He was completely insane. Like he'd been taking some really hardcore drugs. Did drugs even affect vampires? And why the hell was I thinking about drugs, when I was about to die?

"Stefan, I do care a lot about you... But this isn't going to work. I love Damon. I'm sorry, but I do. And I can't just hide that. I tried doing that, and look where it got me," I said and tried not to flinch as the grip around my shoulder got tighter. If he pressed any harder, it would break.

All of sudden he let go of me, and went flying to the other side of the room, knocking over some shelves on the way. Were he had been standing just a minute ago, stood Damon, smirking.

"I love you too, Elena."

Damon's p.o.v

It wasn't exactly hard following Elena's scent. I would recognize that scent any place on earth. I was going to kill Stefan if he'd touched her. It was my fault that I left her, that I didn't see she was coming to Georgia for me. And then she'd seen me feed, of course thinking I had moved on. Stupid misunderstanding. As if I could ever move on from her. There was no moving on from her.

When I got to the old storage house, I clearly heard their voices from the other side of the room.

"_Stefan, I do care a lot about you..." _Wait, they were making up? Of course... it would always be Saint Stefan. She told me that, and of course I didn't listen. I turned around, ready to go back to Bree's bar and get the hell out of the country, when Elena spoke again.

"_But this isn't going to work. I love Damon." _I didn't need to hear any more. I smiled, didn't listen to her last words, and started sneaking up on them. Stefan was on human blood again, his senses had to be heightened. I had to be careful, not to ruin the element of surprise.

Lucky for me, he was very caught up in his whole, torturing Elena thing. He had her pinned against a wall, his hand almost breaking her shoulder. I felt the anger rise in me, as I quickly ran to them, and threw him across the room. As Elena looked at me, relief in her eyes, I couldn't help but tell her.

"I love you too, Elena."

She smiled at me and stepped closer, her arms opening. I smiled and started walking towards her, when she suddenly was dragged back, Stefan holding her close to his body.  
"What are you doing, Stefan?" I asked, feeling the veins appear under my eyes. He wasn't going to hurt her. I would never allow him. Even though he was back on human blood, I was still a lot stronger than him. Strong enough to take him down. Elena looked horrified. All I wanted to do, was to jump forth and take her in my arms. I wanted her to be safe.

"If I can't have her, nobody can..." he whispered, putting a hand to her neck. That was it. I quickly threw a vervain dart, that hit him right on the side of the neck. Soon after he fell to the ground, unconscious, and Elena fell with him. Thank God for Ric's vervain darts. What would I do without them?

I sped to their side, gently lifting Elena from the wet and cold floor. She smiled at me, tears floating down her cheeks. I wanted to wipe them away and bring her somewhere safe. Somewhere far away from my brother.

"Don't kill him..." she said. Her voice was nothing but a hoarse whisper, but I heard it loud and clear, as if she was right next to me, not laying in my arms.

"What? Elena, do you know what he's capable of, when he's on human blood?" I asked and frowned at her, remembering all the stuff Stefan had done. He wouldn't mind Elena dying, as long as he was drinking her blood. He wasn't Stefan, when he was on ripper mode. And I wouldn't risk loosing her. I couldn't loose her. Not now.

"I know, Damon... But he's your brother. Don't kill him. You wouldn't let him kill me. I know that," she said, putting her arms around my neck. I sighed and looked at her. Darn her stubbornness. She was well aware I couldn't resist her puppy eyes. Then I looked down at Stefan. He was still laying on the ground, unconscious from the vervain.

"Please, just take me away from here... I don't care where to. I just want to sleep..." she said, resting her head at my chest. I pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead and sped to the motel I was staying at. I could retrieve my car later. There was only one king sized bed, but I would gladly give that up, for Elena's comfort. I didn't need sleep, and it was great seeing her again. No, not great. Amazing. Just what I needed. I had missed her so much. I wasn't going to be able to leave her again. Not ever.

I gently put her down on the bed, taking her shoes and jacket off. That's when I noticed her arms. They were full of scars. Had Stefan been hurting her?  
No, theses scars were old. This couldn't be Stefan's work. But who had hurt her? This couldn't be... I looked at her arms. The left one was full of small cuts, some of them deeper than other. The right arm was almost clean. Nearly no scars on that arm. I felt the anger rise in me. This had been my fault. She had hurt her self because of me.

"Damon?" She had been fast asleep just a moment ago, but now she was awake. I was sitting with her left arm in my lap, gently stroking the white scars on her beautiful arms. Her arms were a lot thinner than the last time I had seen her. Had she been eating at all?

"What's this?" I whispered, looking at her arm. She went pale instantly and tried ripping her arm away from me, but didn't succeed. "Elena, I asked you something. What is this?" I said, now raising my voice. What the hell had she been doing? I saw tears starting to form in her eyes. God, no, don't cry. I can't handle her crying like that. I felt bitter as hell. She had obviously been sad, and here I was, yelling at her. God, why am I such an idiot?

"Just, tell me... Slowly," I said and quickly made her sit on my lap, her head resting on chest once again.

"I can't, Damon... I..." she silenced again and looked down, tears floating down her cheeks. I sighed and placed a small kiss on her hair. "Have you been... Hurting yourself?" I asked, finding it tough to get the words out. She was my girl, my angel. Nobody was going to hurt her, not even her self. Never, ever. She nodded, too sad to say anything. She started to shiver, the tears coming down in an endless stream. Had my departure made her do all of this?

"Something tells me you also hasn't been eating... It's fine... I can heal you," I said, bringing my wrist to my lips. She grabbed my arm, and shook her head. "No. It doesn't matter. I don't want to consume too much of your blood. I don't want to turn," she said, smiling vaguely. I frowned. Why was she afraid of turning? She knew how vampires became... Well, vampires.

"You won't turn, Elena... You need to die with my blood in your system, and I assure you, that I won't allow you to die within the time it takes for my blood to leave your system," I said and loved the feeling of her tiny hand on my arm. She sighed and fell back on the bed, resting her head against the headboard.

"I know... I'm just scared that I'll turn before I'm ready... But I guess it'll be for the best," she said, not looking too thrilled with the idea. I smiled and bit into my wrist, bringing it to her mouth. She let her mouth touch my skin and made me shiver from the contact. As soon as she started to pull blood from the wound, I made a quick move and place her in my lap, making me able to hold her. Her tiny hands grabbed my arm and brought it even closer to her mouth, demanding more. I let a small moan escape my lips, and felt my lower body react to her immediately.

After a while, I pulled my arm away from her mouth. She'd had enough, and I was starting to feel lightheaded. That isn't good, if you're a vampire.

She looked up at me with big eyes, and then looked at her arm. The scars were gone, but she was still way too thin for her own good. Guess vampire blood doesn't cure that kind of stuff.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, looking at her with concern in my eyes. I had really been worried about her. How was I ever able to leave her in the first place?

"I'm great... Fantastic, actually. Like I haven't been sick a day in my life before..." she said, letting out a small laugh. I smiled at the sound. I had missed that sound a lot more than I knew.

"So, I guess we should talk..."  
Oh shit.

**So, here was chapter 4. I really hope you liked it. On other news, Hotel California is going great! I am working hard on chapter 11, and have already written a lot of future scenes (you are in for one hell of a ride, I can tell you!). That will be my main focus, until it's finished, but I will be writing on some other stuff as well! **

**Oh, and I nearly forgot to mention. I am doing a rewrite of "I'm coming home"! It was my first fan fic about Delena, also my first english fan fic, which is the reason why I've decided to do a rewrite (more like spelling and grammar correction, but whatever). I hope you all like it! :) I'll see you soon!**


End file.
